Unlike Lyft, rival Uber doesn't face those same problems in New
York. It also probably doesn't hurt that Ashwini Chhabra, the
former deputy commissioner for policy and planning at the TLC
joined Uber back in March.

Here's how
Uber did it.

1. It raised a ton of money — $1.5 billion to be
exact— from high-profile investors.

"For drivers currently on another ridesharing platform, we’re
offering new partners $500 after they do just one trip on uberX,"
Uber
wrote on its blog in May. "For drivers already partnering
with Uber, you can earn $500 just for referring someone new from
another ridesharing platform."

5. Uber found a loophole to get legal in New York.

Unlike its ridesharing competitors, Uber's operations in New
York, a key taxi market, are totally legal and in adherence with
the TLC. The company did this by abandoning the traditional
ridesharing model where everyday people can work as part-time
drivers and by establishing relationships with licensed taxi base
stations.

"Due to TLC regulations Uber does not currently have a
ridesharing platform in New York," Uber spokesperson Lane
Kasselman told Business Insider via email. "If regulators embrace
ridesharing with a relaxed approach to licensing and enforcement
with other companies, Uber will be excited to launch our
ridesharing platform soon in the state of New York."

This means, apart from the company's hailing app, Uber
essentially operates as a traditional black car business in New
York. The same is true for the company's low-cost UberX
service.